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Awesomely Bad Facial Hair of the Civil War Era

Facial hair is patriotic. How so? It helped Abraham Lincoln win the election, for starters, and for fifty years after that, every single elected president rode Lincoln’s scruffy coattails except McKinley.

To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War, let’s look at some of the best whiskers the era had to offer.

1. The About-Face

Ambrose E. Burnside was a Union army general famous for his wraparound facial coiffure.

In fact, he is credited with giving us the term “sideburns,” though “cheekstache” might have been more accurate.

6. The Great-Great-Great-Grand-Hipster

Nelson A. Miles made a name for himself during the Civil War, earning a Medal of Honor and the rank of major general.

Although the years that followed turned him into a cruel campaigner against Native Americans, his ‘stache continues to be the envy of his progeny hipsters from Brooklyn to the Mission to Silver Lake.

7. The King of the Forest

Edwin D. Morgan was a New York governor, the first ever chairman of the Republican National Committee, and a major general for the Union Army to boot. Not bad for a guy who looks exactly like the Cowardly Lion.

Charles Griffin was a Union brigadier general during the Civil War and commanded the Department of Texas during Reconstruction. Experts aren’t sure how he managed to eat and drink through his spiraling, conch-shell moustache, but there’s a good chance it’s the reason Starbucks chose a split-tail mermaid for a beverage logo.